This is it, the event that you've been waiting for. The Finale…...Part 1.

LOL. Just kidding.

Enjoy. ;)

When their abductors inevitably entered the room later afterwards, Sam and Ed sat unmoving on the floor with their hands behind their backs, the length of rope still wrapped around their chests. This time, none of the three men wore masks. The two SRU officers watched intently as a square-jawed guy in mid-forties, obviously the leader of the group, stepped closer forward.

He spoke directly to Sam, "Your father is here."

"Really? Whoopee," was Sam's nonchalant reply, straight faced.

Frowning, the man said, "He is here to take you home, Joey. But I can't let you go, not yet. Not until after he has released my men."

"Good for you."

The man's frown grew deeper, slightly puzzled by Sam's lack of interest. But he didn't comment much on it. Instead he turned around to tell one of his lackeys, "Get him in here, Gus."

Gus left, returning a short while later with two men. The younger one was tall and muscular, acting as bodyguard to the white-haired gentleman wearing light grey suit and brown overcoat.

"I've already told you, Tim. I came with your men. You can find them in the truck outside," the elderly man said, looking thoroughly pissed. "Unless you show me my son, my guys will shoot them dead. Now where is he?"

"You blind, old man?" Tim shot back, nudging his head to indicate Sam. "There he is."

Joey's father squinted at the bound captives, at Sam in particular. "Him? Who the fuck is this?"

Stupefied, Tim stared back at him. "What do you mean, who the fuck is this? It's your boy!"

"He's not my boy! I know how my son looks like, you imbecile! This kid is definitely not him." The elder man made a turn to leave. "If this how you play it, fine. Say goodbye to your men, Tim."

"Whoa, Jimbo! Hold on a minute!" Tim cried out. He grabbed the elder man's arm to stall him, causing the bodyguard to growl menacingly in warning as he drew his handgun. The other two men in the room also raised their weapons, aiming to shoot.

Jimbo. If Ed and Sam could see each other, they would have exchanged knowing glances. Jimbo's was the name of the bar where they had visited that night.

Ed whispered to this teammate, "Sam?"

"Not yet, Boss," Sam hissed in reply. "Wait for my signal."

Quickly stepping back, Tim put up his hands in a placating manner. "Whoa, Jimbo. Let us all cool down here. We need to figure everything out for a second."

"There's nothing to figure out," Jimbo retorted. "You don't have my son, I waste your men. End of story."

"But who the hell are these two?" Tim looked perplexed as he pointed at Sam and Ed.

"Not my problem."

Tim disagreed, "Yeah, it is your problem as well. Especially if you had sent them to spy on me."

"What?" The old man glared. "I didn't send them. I don't even know them!"

"We caught them both walking out of your bar."

"So?"

"You used these two men as baits to entrap me."

"What gave you that ridiculous idea?"

"Come on, Jimbo. We all know how your mind works. You took my men and you expect me to retaliate by taking your son. Joey just got out of jail, so where else would he go to celebrate if not Daddy's bar, right? That's why you paid these two bastards to pretend as Joey and his bodyguard Hugo. You wanted me to grab them. You're just looking for an excuse to extend this battle between us."

"I'm gonna tell you this one last time, Tim. I don't know them! Get your head out of your ass and figure out your own stupid error. Don't blame me when you caught the wrong people." Jimbo sighed in disgust. "On second thought, how the hell you mistaken these two for Joey and Hugo? Sure, this kid is blonde like my son but he looks kinda pretty and all, as if he sings in a boy band or something."

"Hey!" Sam protested out loud. Behind him, Ed was barely able to stifle his chuckles.

Jimbo wasn't finished, though. "And that other guy looks a lot like Hugo with his bald head, but he's way too old."

It was Sam's turn to repress his laughter as Ed sputtered, "Old? I'm not even forty five!"

Turning red with embarrassment and anger, Tim swiveled to scowl at his captives. "Who are you?"

"You're asking us?" Ed shot back. "How come you don't even know who you kidnap?"

In response, Tim punched Ed in the jaw. "Shut up!"

Despite the pain, Ed grinned. "So which one is it? Want me to answer your question or keep my mouth shut? Make up your mind."

Tim swung his fist again, hitting Ed on his other cheek. Ed grunted from the blow, which was hard enough to rattle his teeth. Luckily, none came loose from it.

In the background, Jimbo the old man was already laughing. Tim snarled at him, "What? What's so funny? And why are you still here, old man? You were so eager to leave just now."

"Oh, this is just too amusing to be missed, Timmy," Jimbo said, still chuckling. "If this is how your business operates, it's no wonder that you're quickly losing control of your chapter. Here's my last offer, mate. Subject yourself to me, and we'll consider everything settled. You shall have your men back."

"Get the fuck off my case, Jimbo! Can't you see I'm busy? I need to figure out who these two bastards are."

Calmly, the old man asked, "Have you checked their ID?"

Tim paused as he pursed his lips, standing there uncertain and looking exactly like the idiot that he was. Cursing under his breath, he barked at his men, "Their wallets, where are they?"

"Still inside their jackets, I think," Gus chose to respond.

"And where are their jackets?"

"Outside in the van. I think Nolan keeps them."

"Bring 'em in here."

As Gus rushed out, Jimbo shook his head and scoffed. "Bloody amateurs."

"Shut up, old man," Tim snapped. "Seriously, why are you still here?"

While those two continued to bicker between themselves, Sam leaned backward to whisper, "Ed, you're okay?"

"Yep. Peachy," was Ed's dry reply.

"Hang in there."

"Gotcha."

Surveying the room, Sam made a quick headcount. Jimbo and his bodyguard, Tim and one of his men, then Gus and Nolan. That made six hostiles accounted for in total. Sam had no idea how many there really were outside the room, but it wouldn't affect his plan much. From where he sat, the ex-JTF2 noticed that the door could be bolted shut from inside, which would work greatly in his favor.

"Hey, guys," Sam called out, trying to catch Tim's attention. "Listen, clearly there has been a mistake. How about letting us go?"

Tim sneered as he came closer. "After you've seen our faces? Not a chance, pretty boy."

"But we have no quarrel with you. We were just minding our own business when you took us at gunpoint."

Behind Tim, the old man suddenly interrupted. "Something's not right with these two."

"What are you talking about, Jimbo?" Tim asked, his eyes narrowing.

"Look at them. They are not even scared."

Thoughtful, Tim stared hard at both captives. They stared back at him, unflinching. Their sharp gazes unnerved Tim so much that he reacted by grabbing a fistful of Sam's shirtfront. "Who are you? Spies? Who sent you here?"

"We're not spies. And no one sent us."

"Don't lie to me!"

"You kidnap us, remember?"

"Arghhh!" Tim backhanded Sam with a harsh cry. Straightening up, he shouted at no one in particular, "Where the hell is Gus?"

The nameless man who stood guard by the door shrugged. "Maybe he's still searching for the wallets."

Annoyed at the delay, Tim growled in frustration. He grabbed Ed around the throat and squeezed. "Tell me now, you bastard. Who the fuck are you?"

Ed refused to answer. He simply looked straight at Tim with a crooked smile. That just enraged Tim more. He was raising his fist to strike Ed when Jimbo called out to him, "That's not gonna work, Tim. If you want to make them talk, you need to be more persuasive."

"I am being persuasive."

"By using brute force? Tsk, tsk. Too much energy, with too little result."

"You've got a better idea?"

"In fact, I sure do." Smiling, Jimbo stepped closer. "Watch and learn, Tim. Find out how real professionals work."

"Oh, just get on with it!"

Reluctantly, Tim got out of the way and let Jimbo take over. The old man quietly observed the two men sitting bound on the floor before he beckoned his bodyguard. "Niko."

His face impassive, the man called Niko dug a hand into his jacket pocket before taking out a clear plastic shopping bag.

Tim raised an eyebrow. "What do you want these men to do with the stupid plastic bag? Barf in it?"

Plainly ignoring Tim, Jimbo pointed at Sam as he told Niko, "This one. He looks soft. I'm sure he'll bawl within minutes."

Sam glowered as the muscular guy reached for him. "What are you doing?"

Without bothering to reply, Niko yanked the plastic bag over Sam's head and tightened the ties around his neck. Sam jerked in reflex, his chest heaving as he desperately struggled for air. But the faster he breathed, the quicker he'd use up all oxygen. The plastic sucked into his mouth, quickly suffocating him. He had to fight hard against the instinctive reaction to snap up his unbound hands to hit back at Niko.

Oh, Sam could think of at least a dozen ways to kill the man with just his bare hands, but he had to stay in character. He must continue to appear defenseless. Not only his, Ed's life also depended on this plan to work. In the midst of it all, Sam felt it when Ed grabbed both his wrists to anchor them down, keeping him still.

Seconds dragged by. The burning pain in Sam's chest intensified. His head felt like exploding from the extreme pressure. He was on the verge of passing out when the plastic bag was abruptly pulled away, leaving him reeling from the sudden burst of fresh air.

Beaming with utter confidence, the old man leaned down to peer closely at the gasping young man. "Ready to talk now, boy? What's your name?"

Despite everything, Sam was able to grin in return. "Joey."

Jimbo's smile fell flat. "You're not Joey."

"You called me Joey on the phone."

"I thought you were my son."

Sam emitted a soft chuckle. "Am I not your son?"

"What's going on, Jimbo? What is he talking about?" Tim asked with growing suspicion.

Slightly shaken by the lack of fear that Sam was showing, the old man took a step back. "He's just talking shit. Niko, give him another."

Right about then, Gus hurriedly walked into the room carrying two jackets in his arms. "Found them!"

"What took you so long?" Tim yelled at him.

"I…uh…I had to go find Nolan first. He was standing guard right at the front and he holds the key to the van—"

"Quit your jabbering and give them to me! Where are their wallets?"

"Still inside the pockets. So are their cellphones."

As Niko was left hovering over the two captives, Jimbo went over to join Tim and Gus who quickly went through the contents of the two jackets.

Sam gave Ed's hand a brief squeeze. "Boss?"

"I'm here."

Niko frowned at their quiet interchange. Before he could react though, Sam emitted a sudden yell, "NOW!"

As one, the two SRU officers jumped to their feet with their fists upraised, sending the rope around their torsos to fall to their feet. Sam had managed to saw through it before the men appeared and rewound the rope to its former position, creating an illusion as if they were still tied up.

Niko was ultimately caught by surprise. He hadn't had the chance to move when Sam slammed the heel of his palm up the big man's nose. There was the sickening sound of breaking bones before Niko toppled over, hitting the floor like a heavy log. He stayed there, completely still.

Meanwhile, Ed had advanced on the others. With his full attention on the jackets and wallets, Tim was late to react. Ed was already upon him when the lead abductor swiveled around, only to receive quick double jabs to the jaw. Tim staggered into Jimbo, and both men fell in a tangle of arms and legs.

In one fluid move, Sam leapt and kicked the gun out of Gus' hand. Gus cried out in pain when the next kick hit his sternum, throwing him onto his ass. Sam caught the weapon in midair and took aim at the remaining man standing by the door. "Gun down, gun down! Do it now!"

Gaping at his beaten comrades, the man found he had no choice and so he quickly dropped his Beretta. Sam rushed over and shoved him down to his knees before collecting the gun. Next, he slammed the door shut and bolted the lock. "Ed? Status!"

"No harm. Subjects contained!" Ed announced. He had already confiscated the rest of the weapons. Tim, Jimbo and Gus were now lying on their front, hands clasped atop their heads. Sam dragged his man over to join them.

Ed jerked his chin towards Niko the giant. "He still breathes?"

"Yep. Just barely." Sam shrugged, and then added as an afterthought, "I think."

"You think?"

"If I wanted him to be dead, he would be. I pulled my punch at the last moment so he should be alright."

"Huh." Ed leaned closer to hiss into Jimbo's ear. "You hear that, old man? Soft, ain't he? Yeah, that's him being real soft. You don't want to be anywhere near him when he's in a hard mode. Trust me, he's a cyborg."

Sam snorted with a shake of his head as he rummaged through Ed's jacket. He found the cellphone and tossed it at his team leader. "Would you do the honor?"

Ed deftly caught the phone and started dialing. "What about the Nolan guy?"

"Let him stew outside. He can't do a thing from there, not when we got his boss as hostage." Just then, heavy poundings landed on the door.

"Will the door hold?"

"It will hold."

"Who the fuck are you?" Tim was shouting as he glared at them from his awkward position on the floor. "Damn it, who the fuck are you?"

"Why, we're the famous Hardy Boys," Ed wryly replied. His call finally got through. "Yeah, this is Sergeant Ed Lane from the SRU. I'm with Constable Sam Braddock. We have a 10-33. Requesting backup. No, we have no idea where we are. You have to trace this number. I'll stay on the line."

Ed continued to give the despatcher a brief overview on everything that had happened, along with the details of their current position. He was quickly reassured that help was already being sent their way.

"Cops?" Jimbo was incredulous, staring daggers at Tim. "You kidnapped some cops? You moron! How stupid can you be?"

"How the hell should I know? I thought we had your son and his bodyguard!"

"The kid is nothing like my son!"

"Shut the hell up!" Sam roared. "The next one who speaks will have the plastic bag wrap around his head!"

They shut up. Turning to Ed, Sam asked expectantly, "So, Boss, did I pass?"

Ed just laughed.

"Ed, how mad do you think the wives would be?"

"I don't know, Samo. Let's go in and find out."

Sam winced. "This is gonna be painful."

"Yep." Ed nodded with a grimace. "A lot more painful than the physical knocks to our heads."

It was almost two in the morning. The two SRU officers had been sitting in Ed's car for quite a while, staring out the windshield at the closed front door of the Lane's house and deciding whether it was safe to face their spouses. Both men knew how late the hour was, but they couldn't help it. They had only managed to leave the scene an hour after the backup arrived. By then, the dust had settled and all bad guys had been taken into custody.

Troy, Team Four's team leader, had stared at Ed and Sam with a raised eyebrow when he found the fellow SRU officers who had locked themselves inside the narrow room at the back of Tim's warehouse, with five other subjects lying docile at their feet.

"Aren't you guys supposed to be off duty?"

Ed had smirked. "Didn't you know? This is what Sam and I do in our free time. Playing vigilante."

"Well, thanks to you both, we have apt reasons to detain the most feared crime boss in town," Inspector Stainton had said next. He had brought his own team of unis to the scene. "We have been keeping Jimbo Malone under surveillance for months now. There have been several charges on his name but nothing sticks. Witnesses mysteriously vanish before further statements could be gathered."

"What exactly is he involved in?" Sam had asked. "I thought his bar is legit."

"The bar is only a front to his money laundering business. There's also an illegal gambling going on in the basement. But he's mainly a loan shark. Jimbo basically owns the city."

"So what's the story with the other guy, Tim?" Ed was curious to know. "He clearly has some serious control issues."

"Tim Myers. He is another loan shark who's trying to cement his own territory. Jimbo doesn't like the competition and wants Tim to either pay his allegiance to him or take the business elsewhere. We found out that Tim has been aiming to use Jimbo's son as some leverage, but he's a little bit too late."

"What do you mean?"

"Joey Malone and his bodyguard have been caught just hours ago. DUI. Joey was so high he drove his Porsche into a ditch. Here, look at this." Inspector Stainton took out a photograph from the file folder he held. "That's Joey and his bodyguard, Hugo."

When Sam and Ed looked at the picture, they groaned out loud in disgust. Like Sam, Joey Malone was blonde, but he was as thin as a beanpole. Hugo, meanwhile, though bald like Ed, had a bulging belly as huge as Jules' during her second trimester.

"They look nothing like us!" Sam rolled his eyes.

"And Tim has mistaken us for them? What, is he blind?" Ed smacked himself in the forehead. "God save me from blithering idiots!"

After they had had their injuries checked and dressed by the EMT, Ed and Sam then took a lift back to town with Team Four to collect Ed's car from the parking garage. And now, here they were, sitting in the driveway, dreading the inevitable.

"Come on, buddy," Ed finally said, pushing open the car door. "Let's go face the music."

The house was mostly dark when they walked in, but the lights were still on in the living room. Both men tiptoed towards the direction and found Sophie Lane sitting alone on the sofa, watching some late night show on television. Upon seeing them, her eyes narrowed to a slit. She switched off the TV and rose to her feet, her arms crossed.

"Honey, I'm home," Ed lamely announced with a sheepish grin. Next to him, Sam bit his lower lip as he tried to keep himself from smiling.

"Do you know what time it is?" Sophie asked, not amused.

"Uh…two?"

"You told me you'd be home hours ago." She threw her arms in the air. "Where the hell have you guys been? Jules and I have been worried sick!"

"Sophie, we're really sorry." Sam looked contrite. "Something came up and we got…uh…tied up."

"You could've called."

"Honestly, Soph," Ed said, placing his hands on her stiff shoulders, "If we could, we would have."

"What happened to you?" She looked closely at them both. "Where did you get those bruises, Ed? And Sam, what caused that awful lump on your temple?"

"We were leaving the bar when some bozos thought it was fun roughing us up," Ed replied with a shrug.

"You got into fight in a bar? What were you thinking?"

"No, that's not what I mean," Ed quickly said. "We have been—"

"Oh, save the explaining for tomorrow, Ed." She waved him off. "I'm sleepy and I'm going to bed."

"Wait, where's Jules?" Sam looked around and couldn't see any sign of his wife. One corner of the room was overflowed with opened gifts, though. "She hasn't gone home by herself, has she?"

"She's asleep in the guest bedroom upstairs." Waving a finger at him, Sophie added, "And don't you dare disturb her, Sam. She's very tired. She needs her rest."

"I'm going up to see her."

"No, you're not." Ed's wife placed a palm against his chest. "Let her sleep. You can talk to her in the morning. Now, either you go home or you can spend the night in here."

Sam admitted defeated with a sigh. "Okay, I'll stay. I'm not up to for the drive home anyway."

"Good. I'll bring down some pillows and blankets." As Sophie turned towards the stairs, Ed went to follow her. She held out her arm, stopping her husband in his tracks. "I don't think so, honey."

"What?" Ed asked, bewildered.

"We had a deal, remember? You come home drunk, you get the couch."

"I'm not drunk!"

"So you said."

"But I'm not."

"Look, Izzy is sleeping in our room tonight. She has been a little cranky and I have a hard time soothing her feathers. So be a good Daddy and give her some space, okay? Don't worry, Ed. I'll bring down some pillows for you too. " With that, she disappeared up the stairs.

Turning to his teammate, Ed wondered out loud, "What the hell just happened?"

"I think our wives have just kicked us from their beds." Sam shrugged as he tiredly plopped himself onto the couch. "At least you've had your standoff with your wife. I have yet to face mine."

"Good luck, then." Ed grinned, right before he shoved Sam off the couch.

"Hey!" Sam yelped as he hit the floor.

"Dibs! My house, my couch."

The next morning, Ed was jerked awake when someone cheerfully announced, "Rise and shine, sleepyheads!"

Ed instantly bolted upright in the couch, squinting against the morning glare. Muttering under his breath, he swiped away the covers and threw his legs over the side.

He stepped right onto Sam's belly.

"Holy fuck!" Sam woke up cursing, his fists flying. In the confusion, Ed lost his balance and fell heavily on top of his friend. Sam cursed some more. "Holy freaking fuck!"

"Sam, be still!"

"Get off me!" Sam yelled, fighting with the covers.

"I'm trying!" Ed pushed himself upright, jabbing his knee into Sam's groin in the process.

Sam's eyes crossed. "Aw, jeez…"

In the background, a woman was laughing. The men froze and turned to look. Jules was leaning against the wall, shaking hard from uncontrollable laughter. In her hand was her smart phone. She was video-recording the entire scene.

"Smile, guys. I'm gonna upload this to YouTube!"

Sam turned white. Finally free of the confining blankets, he jumped to his feet. "Sweetheart, give me that."

"Nope." Still laughing, Jules waddled out of the room as fast as she could. Sam started to run after her, but remembered that he was wearing only his boxer-briefs. Pausing to grab a blanket, he wrapped it around his waist and went to give chase.

Sprawled against the couch, Ed blinked for several seconds before he promptly broke up laughing. Rising to his feet, he grabbed his pants from the back of the couch and put them on. Based on the delicious aroma coming from the kitchen, he bet that Sophie had whipped up some power breakfast fit for a king. And so that was where he headed next.

"Good morning, hon."

His wife turned from the stove to smile back at him. "Morning, darling. How's the couch?"

"Comfy." Snaking his arms around her waist, Ed kissed her neck. "Miss me?"

"A lot. What was that screaming I just heard?"

"It was Sam. I stepped on him."

"You what?"

"I totally forgot that he slept on the floor next to the couch." He grinned, remembering what had just transpired. "Poor guy. Jules has recorded everything and she threatens to let the whole world see it."

Just then they heard excited voices coming from outside, a few seconds before Jules went running by the kitchen window. Sam was right behind her, trailing blankets in his wake.

"Jules, give it to me."

"Catch me first!"

"I'm not going to tackle you to the ground. You're eight months pregnant!"

As Ed and Sophie watched in amusement, Sam managed to grab Jules wrist and yanked her into his arms. "Got you!"

Grinning, Jules hid her phone behind her back. "Oh, yeah? What are you gonna do to me?"

"I will cherish you forever." With a lascivious smile, Sam put his palms on both sides of her belly. His smile grew wider when he felt the baby kicked. "My God. I'm going to be a Daddy. Very soon."

"Are you scared?"

"Damn right I am!"

"No cursing in front of the fetus, Daddy Braddock."

"Oops. Sorry."

"I'm scared too, Sammy," she admitted. "But we'll get through this together. It's going to be okay."

"I know. That's what Ed told me. Now I'm sure everything will be alright."

"Good. So let's continue."

Sam was puzzled. "Continue with what?"

The mischievous glint in Jules' eyes was the only warning. Before he knew it, she had grabbed a fistful of his blanket and gave it a sharp tug before taking off running with it, leaving him standing there on the lawn only in his underwear.

"Jules!" His face burning pink, Sam went after her again.

In the kitchen, Sophie and Ed couldn't help but laugh.

"They will make great parents," she said.

"I agree." He rubbed her arms. "Soph, about last night. I wasn't drunk, and neither was Sam. We were kidnapped."

She nodded. "I know."

"What…you know? How?"

"When you failed to return as you promised, Jules called the Barn and told the SRUs to have a lookout for you both. Troy from Team Four immediately called back as soon as they found out what happened. You and Sam have quite an adventure, I heard."

Ed narrowed his eyes. "Then why did you make me sleep on the couch?"

"Actually, it was Jules' idea." She grinned. "She said that if you and Sam can have so much fun together, then you should try sleeping together too. See if you like it. So, how did it go?"

"I'm glad Sam is not my wife." He chuckled. "He packs quite a hell of a punch. I don't want to be left black and blue every time I have to wake him up!"

"I pack quite a punch too, you know." Wrapping her arms around his neck, Sophie pulled him closer and brought down his lips against hers. "Let me show you."

And she did just that.

THE END

Again, thank you so much for reading! Also, big hugs and kisses to those who spent some of their precious time to review. I'm real glad to know that most of you enjoy this story, and I will continue to bring more Sam whumps or SED moments in the upcoming fics.

Currently, I'm still working on 'The Truth'. I will put up the new chapter within this month. Before that, I have another Sam whump fic to upload. The title is 'The Prank'. Wait for it next week.

See ya soon, guys!

p/s : I'll be sitting for a very important job interview in a couple of days. It is real major, and will prove to be the biggest turning point in my career. Do pray for my success. ;)

Adromir has left the building! ^_^